The present invention relates to a locking device, in particular to a cylinder locking device which may be assembled by connecting a parted casing into two pieces.
Japanese Patent Disclosure No. 9-112099 shows a steering column shaft locking device with small number of structural components wherein a key cylinder axially moves in a casing by insertion of a key into the key cylinder to detect insertion of the key and surely move a locking rod to a locked position when the key is drawn out of the key cylinder. This steering column shaft locking device comprises a housing disposed in the casing for axial movement; the key cylinder positioned in a cavity formed in the housing for rotation and axial movement; tumblers slidably positioned in slits formed in the key cylinder to project into tumbler grooves formed in the housing; a housing spring for resiliently urging the housing toward a cover secured to the front portion of the casing; a rotor connected to the key cylinder; a hanger drivingly connected to a cam rotated with the rotor; a hanger spring for resiliently urging the hanger toward a locked position; a locking rod movable between locked and unlocked positions; and a pin protruding from the hanger. When the key cylinder is rotated with a proper key, the hanger and locking rod are moved from the locked;position to the unlocked position while an edge of the rotor pushes the pin inwardly.
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 55-8675 discloses an anti-theft device for an automobile which comprises a housing; a casing located in the housing; a key cylinder rotatably mounted in the casing; a flange member formed with an aperture; a latch engageable with a dent formed on an inner cylindrical surface of the housing; and a slider movable in the housing. In this anti-theft device, the key cylinder, flange member, latch and slider are mounted in the casing to form an assembly, and the assembled casing is then inserted into the housing. At the same time, the latch is put into the housing, passing over an inclined inner surface formed at an inlet of the housing so that the latch is automatically brought into engagement with the dent of the housing by one inserting operation. When the assembled casing is removed from the housing, a pin can be inserted into the housing through the aperture to move the latch away from the dent by the pin for detachment of the latch, and then the assembled casing can be pulled out of the casing for exchange or repair.
Japanese Utility Model Disclosure No. 55-22223 shows a steering column shaft locking device which comprises a cylinder lock having an axially movable rotor in a casing; a cam formed with the rotor; a hanger operatively connected with the cam; and a locking rod connected with the hanger for locking and unlocking a steering column shaft; an ignition switch operated by rotation of the rotor; a ring disposed in a hole of the casing and formed with an arcuate groove; and a pin received within the groove for limiting an angular rotation range of the rotor and preventing detachment of the rotor. The ring of this locking device is formed with a protrusion on a middle of the groove to stop rotation of the rotor during the rotation. The casing is formed with a concavity in front of the protrusion of the ring. In assemblage, the cylinder lock can be inserted into the casing with the pin by one operation, and then in disassemblage, the cylinder lock can be removed from the casing by inwardly pushing the pin with a needle through the hole of the casing after rotation of the key cylinder to a specific angular position.
Plural kinds of cylinder locks are mounted on an automobile to lock a steering column shaft, doors, trunk lid, and glove box lid, and a same key code is given to these cylinder locks to operate them with a single key for management and operation of the cylinder locks as a key set.
In this case, it is very complicated and troublesome to exactly manage a steering column shaft locking device as a key set because it is attached to a steering column in an assembling process of the steering system independently from attachment of other locking devices to the doors and trunk lid. In other words, the steering column shaft locking device is defective in that it cannot be mounted on the steering column in a coincident process including simultaneous attachment of the other locking devices to the doors and trunk lid.
An attempt has been made to solve this problem, as proposed for example by Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 55-8675 and Japanese Utility Model Disclosure No. 55-22223, which demonstrate steering column shaft locking devices wherein the frame with the locking rod can previously mounted to the steering column to attach locking structures to the frame later. However, the steering column shaft locking device of the type shown by Japanese Patent Disclosure No. 9-112099 has its particular structure of the key cylinder and rotor which are axially movable and rotatable as an integration in response to insertion and rotation of a key inserted into the key cylinder, and consequently it cannot adopt such a divided structure to previously mount the frame with the locking rod to the steering column shaft and then attached the cylinder lock to the frame in a later stage so as to accomplish the axial and rotative movements of the key cylinder.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a cylinder locking device which may be assembled by connecting a casing divided into two pieces and a housing for axial and rotative movements of a key cylinder and a rotor together in response to the key operation.
The cylinder lock device according to the present invention includes a casing (20); a housing (24) disposed in the casing (20) for axial movement of the housing (24); a key cylinder (21) disposed in the casing (20) for rotation with a key (19); and a rotor (22) having a cam (23) and connected to the key cylinder (21) for their integral rotation. The casing (20) comprises a rear casing (13) for receiving the rotor (22), and a front casing (14) for receiving the key cylinder (21) and the housing (24). The cylinder lock device further comprises a joint means (15) of its non-circular section for connecting the rotor (22) and the key cylinder (21) for their integral rotation; a connecting means (16) for coupling the rotor (22) and the housing (24) for their integral axial movement and a coupling means (17) for securing the front casing (14) to the rear casing (13).
In assemblage, the rotor (22) is inserted into the rear casing (13), and the key cylinder (21) and the housing (24) are inserted into the front casing (14). Under the circumstances, when the key cylinder (21) is in a specific angular position such as an ACC position, the separated rear casing (13) and front casing (14) can be connected for releasable engagement by the coupling means (17) to prevent removal of the front casing (14) from the rear casing (13). When the key cylinder (21) is rotated with the key (19) from the specific angular position to any other position, the connecting means (16) serves to connect the housing (24) and the rotor (22) for their integral rotation and axial movement.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the connecting means (16) comprises a hook (30) formed with the housing (24), and an arcuate projection (31) formed with the rotor (22) so that the hook (30) of the housing (24) may engage with the arcuate projection (31). A notch (32) is formed in the arcuate projection (31) to move the hook (30) through the notch (32) in the specific angular position of the key cylinder (21) other than a locked position so that the connecting means (16) serves to connect the key cylinder (21) and the rotor (22) for their integral axial movement whenever the key cylinder (21) is in the locked position to draw the key (19) away from the key cylinder (21). The hook (30) may be engaged with the arcuate projection (31) of the rotor (22) when the key cylinder (21) is rotated from the specific angular position to another position.
In another embodiment of the present invention, a hook (30) of the connecting means (16) may have a claw (34) pivotally connected to the rotor (22), and a recess (21c) formed with the key cylinder (21). The hook (30) is rotatable through a notch (32) formed in the housing (24) to bring the claw (34) of the hook (30) into engagement with the recess (21c) in the specific angular position of the key cylinder (21) other than the locked position to draw the key (19) out of the key cylinder (21). The housing (24) can be axially moved and cover the hook (30) to prevent rotation of the hook (30) away from the recess (21c) when the key cylinder (21) is rotated from the specific angular position to another position.
The coupling means (17) comprises a stem (35) disposed in a hole (14a) radially formed in the front casing (14), and a stem spring (36) disposed in the hole (14a) for radially outwardly urging the stem (35). An outer end of the stem (35) can releasably be engaged with an outer hole (37) radially formed in the rear casing (13) because the stem (35) may be positioned in an inner hole (21b) radially formed in the key cylinder (21) in the specific angular position such as the ACC position other than the locked position when the stem (35) in the outer hole (37) is pushed inwardly against resilient force of the stem spring (36). Thus, when the key cylinder (21) is rotated to the specific angular position other than the locked position, the inner hole (21b) is registered with the stem (35), and the notch (32) comes into alignment with the hook (30). When the key cylinder (21) is not rotated to the ACC position, no alignment of the inner hole (21b) and the stem (35) can be performed to prevent removal of the front casing (14) from the rear casing (13). After the key cylinder (21) is rotated to the ACC position, the stem (35) can be pushed inwardly into the inner hole (21b) with some tool to release the engagement of the front casing (14) with the rear casing (13). When the front casing (14) is removed from the rear casing (13), the hook (30) can come over the notch (32) to disengage between the rotor (22) and the key cylinder (21) for separation of the front casing (14) from the rear casing (13).
In an embodiment of the present invention applied for a steering column shaft locking device, the cylinder lock device further comprises a locking rod (18) movable toward and away from a steering column shaft, a hanger (40) connected to the locking rod (18) for integral movement between locked and unlocked positions during rotation of the rotor (22) with the cam (23), a hanger spring (41) for resiliently urging the hanger (40) toward the locked position, and a pin (42) retractably protruding from the hanger (40). When the key (19) is inserted into the key cylinder (21), it causes the rotor (22) to move back against elastic force of a housing spring (28) which resiliently forwardly urges the housing (24) so that the rotor (22) pushes the pin (42) inside the hanger (40).
In other words, when the key (19) is inserted into the key cylinder (21), the housing (24), the key cylinder (21) and the rotor (22) are axially and inwardly moved against elastic force of the housing spring (28). Then, with rotation of the key cylinder (21), the rotor (22) is rotated with the key cylinder (21) between the locked and unlocked positions.
When the key (19) is pulled out of the key cylinder (21), the housing (24) and the key cylinder (19) are axially and forwardly moved by elastic force of the hanger spring (41). At the same time, the rotor (22) is axially and forwardly moved with the key cylinder (19) through the connecting means (16). Thus, the coupling means (17) can connect the separated rear casing (13) and front casing (14), and the connecting means (16) can connect the rotor (22) with the housing (24) so that the rotor (22) can axially be moved and rotated with the key cylinder (21) to lock or unlock a controlled object by the rotation of the rotor (22).